Trolling Motor Information
Years ago there were a lot more companies that put out Trolling motors and
now it has come down to two that flag in my mind, Motor Guide and Minn Kota, and these are a must have item on your
bass boat.
When they are running it will not scare
the fish away like the big motor. You do not want to
announce to the fish that you are here to catch them so you want to shut the big motor down
long before you get to the spot to fish, then ease up to the spot with the
Trolling Motor.
Trolling Motor Thrust
Pounds
Trolling Motor Selection starts with
deciding which thrust rating ranging from 43 to 109 pounds is right for your
boat. The size of your boat will determine what size
Trolling Motor you will need, what I mean by this is not just how big your boat is, but
how much weight you are going to be pulling or pushing.
When I first got my 17 1/2 foot boat, it came with a
43 pound thrust Motor Guide. The way they test the thrust
rating is they tie a line to the Trolling Motor and start backing off. They measure the pounds
of pressure it takes before the line brakes; at least that is what I have been
told.
After I loaded my boat
up with all the weight, I found that the Trolling Motor
was not giving me what I wanted. If you fish in water that has current and a lot of it, the
proper sized Trolling Motor can keep you from ending up on a pile of rocks. I have seen
guys that had their boat piled up on rocks so fast because the Trolling motor did
not save the boat and there was not enough time to get to the big
motor.
Always look at getting a bigger
thrust Trolling Motor, I switched to a Minn Kota 80 pound
Thrust and am very happy with the product, that is almost double of what I
had.
Now we can talk about where to put the Trolling
Motor. Most are seen at the front of the boat up by the seat at the very front
of the boat. I have a small, what I call a pond jumper two man boat, for
which I bought a 43 pound thrust hand control that I can put it at the front
or rear.
Cable Operated/Wireless/Remote Control/Auto Pilot Trolling
Motors
Trolling motors come in many
different types. Some with cable and then they have a wireless
one with no cable. As you can imagine, they do like them very much as
the price shows.
They have foot controls where it will keep your hands
free to keep on fishing the many different spots as you move the boat along, and
they have hand control ones. They even have come up with installing a Depth
Finder/Sonar in the lower unit out of harms way and concealed
wires.
Just when you thought you have heard and seen it
all, they even have a remote control Trolling motor that can be run anywhere
inside the boat. Lets say that you launch your boat and somehow it floats away from
the bank. If you have the remote control in your pocket, you can get the
boat back to the bank without getting wet.
It can be put on the rod that
you're fishing, your wrist, your belt, or in your pocket.
If that don't take the cake, how about the Auto
Pilot Trolling motor that gives you unparalleled navigational
control.
Point the motor in
the direction you want to travel, activate the Autopilot
button and you're set. The patented compass in the Autopilot keeps your boat
traveling on course, even in the heavy
wind.
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